Never Think
by keep-me-posted
Summary: Ruffnut's always had a poor taste in guys, but she's about to make one of her best decisions yet.
1. I Was Thinking

**Hey guys! I've got another story up! This one's about Ruffnut...and Fishlegs; sorta. That is, it will be if I decide to break my code against no chapter stories [as I'm not very good at them] and decide to write another chapter or two for this story. *Shrugs* We'll see. But if so, the genre and rating will probably change. I hope you all like it! And I hope it doesn't seem too drabble-y. But when I get inside Ruff's head, I usually write like that. Maybe that's just how her thoughts work. :P Anyways, thanks for reading!**

**I do not own HTTYD.**

* * *

Ruffnut always had a poor taste in guys. She knew that.

First there was Hiccup, whom she only started crushing on after she found out that he was slightly crazy in the head. Which was also when he and Astrid had technically already been going out. Of course, that didn't stop Ruff from flirting with him, anyway. Though, what she called flirting [punching, hitting, the occasional axe thrown his way], Hiccup took as pure hatred towards him.

So, she then went after Snotlout. They seemed to be a perfect fit, as they liked a lot of the same things and both had extremely short tempers. But he was immature, even for Ruffnut, who was the queen of immaturity. Perhaps they were just too alike and that's why it didn't work out.

The girl twin, who was currently sitting cross-legged on the kitchen floor [as that was the coolest place in the house], ruffled her hair and sighed.

And, of course, her brother took this time to come in and bother her. "What are you doing?"

"Thinking."

"Why?" He asked, with a sneer.

"I'm putting my brain to good use," She replied back. "You should try it sometime." Pause. "Oh wait, first you need a brain!"

And that's all it took to get Tuffnut scowling and tackling her to the ground. But, just as she was about to pin him down and proclaim her victory, Tuff yanked on her blonde locks, causing her to fumble. Furious, she yanked his hair right back.

"Ow, not fair!" He groaned, slapping her hands away.

"If you don't like it," Ruffnut grunted. "Then cut it off."

"No way!" He spat back. "I've already waited this long for it to grow out! What would be the point of taking it off again?"

"'Cuz then you'd actually look like a boy."

More tackling.

"Stoick the Vast has long hair," Tuffnut said. "No one mocks him!"

"Duh, he's the chief," Ruff answered. "And since when can you even be compared to Stoick?"

"Since I grew these bad boys," The boy twin raised up his body and flexed his arms showing off a somewhat large bump on each of them. His sister rolled her eyes. And with her brother still soaking in his pride, she managed to punch him in the stomach and bring him down.

"Ha!" She grinned, pinning him to the ground.

"Mooom!" Tuffnut whined. Ruffnut managed another eye roll.

The twins mother, who'd only been half paying attention to them, spoke up. "She's right, Tuff dear. One of my friends mistook you for Ruffnut the other day."

Tuff's eyes went wide and his sister had accidentally let him up, as she was laughing so hard to notice.

His cheeks burned. "We weren't talking about that anymore."

"Oh," Their mother turned away from her work. "Then never mind that. What were you saying?"

Still have a chuckling fit, Ruff didn't register when her brother pounced on her 'till she felt the blow.

More grunting; more tackling.

"That the best you got, _Ruffnut_?" She joked.

"At least one of us looks like a girl," He growled.

She then looked at her brother, her eyes like fire. Tuff cowered back a bit, but refused to take it back. So, merely grabbing him by the wrist, Ruff twisted his arm 'till she heard a satisfying crack.

"Oh, I'm hurt!" Tuffnut exclaimed one of his popular lines. "I am very much hurt."

Ruffnut sighed. She had always liked fighting. Especially with her brother. And especially now that lately she'd been thinking way too much. Thinking wasn't one of her strong points, but she'd been doing a lot of it lately.

Fighting always seemed to take her mind off things. Or managed to pretty much shut her brain down completely, except for in the means of pain. But unfortunately, her brother could never last longer than ten minutes in a tackle, which was not enough to keep her mind asleep.

Finally, Ruff stood up and headed for the door. "I'm going out."

"Out?" Her mother asked. "Out where? It's nearly dusk."

"I don't know," She answered. "To see some friends."

"What friends?" Tuffnut grumbled.

Ruff turned to face him and he immediately shut his mouth.

"Well, don't be long!" She called back, still too preoccupied with her cooking.

Not bothering to say goodbye, the girl twin headed outside, slamming the door on her wait out. It was getting dark, but it was more humid than chilly, so she didn't bother bringing along an extra vest.

She wasn't really sure where she was going. All she knew was she didn't feel like thinking. Especially about the recent things she was forced to think about. But the only thing that kept her mind of anything was fighting. And her usual tackle partner was already out of the running.

She thought about going back to grab an axe and take it to the forest to do some practice swings, but advised against it, as it was getting darker by the second.

So, she decided to see Astrid, as out of the six teens she hung out with, they seemed to be the closest. She rapped her knuckled against the wood of her friend's front door and waited.

Seconds later, the door opened. "Ruffnut, hey! What are you doing here?"

"I'm bored," She admitted, kicking at the ground.

"A little late, isn't it?"

"Why is everyone hung up on that all of a sudden?" She asked. "We never cared about the lateness of the hour before. And that was back when dragons raided us each and every night!"

"I just...I wish I'd had known you were coming over," She mumbled. "I'd have...uhm-"

Piecing everything together, Ruffnut suddenly realized. "Hiccup's here, isn't he?"

"Well..."

As if answering the question himself, the young blacksmith trudged down her hallway, his metal foot clacking along the way. "Hey Astrid, where does your dad keep his ham-" He paused. "Hey, Ruff!"

It wasn't that she disliked Hiccup. In fact, he was one of the easiest guys to get along with, as you didn't have to wonder if he'd take something you said the wrong way and try to kill you. Ruffnut just didn't like that out of all the things she was, she suddenly became a burden.

"What's going on?" Hiccup managed a smile.

_Odin, why did he have to be so cute?_ "Nothing," The Thorston girl said, quickly. "I was just leaving."

"Oh, Ruff, you don't-"

She interrupted Astrid by raising her hand up. "It's fine. It's getting late, anyway."

And with that, the friends said there goodbyes. Though, even after the door was closed, Ruff couldn't help but overhear the conversation from inside the house.

"So, where's your dad keep your hammer?"

"Hiccup, I invited you over to take you away from the forge!" Astrid complained. "Not so you could turn my house _into_ one!"

Shaking her head, Ruffnut headed off to the village's well. It was usually one of the worst places to be as it was mega loud and crowded. But, as it was the sun was coming close to setting, it was empty. So, there she sat, finishing up what she had been thinking up before.

What had she been thinking about before? Right, guys. And how she didn't know how to pick 'em. Why was she even thinking about this? Because her mom said she was getting to a point where she should be making an effort to think about her future.

And unfortunately, a girl's future resulted in becoming a woman. A wife. A mother. Ruffnut groaned and kicked a random pail that was left at the well. For Thor's sake! She was barely even sixteen. She didn't need to think about stuff like this!

Annoyed with herself and her stupid brain, she headed back home.

"Back so soon?" Her mother asked as soon as Ruff stepped through the door frame. "I thought maybe you'd have stopped at some boy's house."

"Not now, mom," Ruffnut grumbled.

"You can't keep putting this off, dear."

"I know, I know," She huffed. "'Because I'm growing into a woman, and pretty soon I'm gonna need a man by my side.'" She managed to let out all the things her mother's been telling her for weeks in a half mocking tone.

"Exactly!"

"What if I don't want to be a wife?" Ruff insisted. "Remember Camicazi? She never got married and she was one of the bravest viking warriors in the village."

"She also didn't live past the age of thirty." Her mother said it in a light tone, as it was not wise to speak of such great viking's in vain.

_Who did these days?_ "And you're saying if she had a husband she would have lived longer?"

"She was lonely," She replied back.

"She was happy!" Ruffnut explained.

"Not all the time."

"She got to be what ever other viking only wished they could be," The young viking continued. "She was even better then most men around here." She didn't know if everything she was saying was true, of course, as she had never known Camicazi personally; only heard tales of her throughout the years.

Her mother slapped down her sewing work and glared at her daughter. "That's enough!" She paused; sighed. "Are you saying you're not interested in any of the boys around here?"

Ruff crossed her arms. "I don't know."

"What about Hiccup?" She asked. "Or Snotlout?"

The girl twin sighed and slumped into the nearest chair. Her mother obviously wasn't up to date on her dating life.

"Or what about that Fishlegs?"

Ruff perked up at this. Fishlegs? Of course! Why hadn't she thought of him before? She indistinctly rubbed her arm. He'd always been there with the group whenever they all went to hang out, so why had she never taken notice to him?

She closed her eyes and thought about that. Oh, right! 'Cuz he was always off in some corner reading, or spouting out useless dragon facts we didn't need to know anymore. She snorted to herself. Still...he was nice enough. And cute. Was he cute? More thinking. Yes, she supposed he could be.

Maybe she could try to get to know Fishlegs a little more. Just for the heck of it! What harm could it do? But not now. Could she now? She had a sudden urge to. Who cares how late it was getting? She didn't! Quickly, Ruffnut sat up, giving herself a slight head rush.

"Now what are you doing?"

"Going out!" She exclaimed, reaching for the doorknob.

"Again?" Her mother asked. "Where are you going this time?"

"To see Fishlegs."

And as soon as Ruffnut exited the house, her mother was smiling.

* * *

**Gah, kinda long. I stole the name "Camicazi" from the HTTYD book series. But she's not supposed to who she is in the books. I just needed a female viking name, and I was too uncreative to think up one myself, lol. This is also the first story I've written where I have Ruffnut and Tuffnut tackling. They're so fun to write about. I thought the idea of making Tuffnut somewhat of a momma's boy would be hilarious. :P**

**So, do you think I should continue with the story? Or should I leave it as is? I'd hate to ruin a perfectly okay OneShot, lol. Comments are love! :]**


	2. He Should Have Known

**Alright, here it is! Chapter 2! The first actual continuing chapter I've done in a long time [third, overall]. Thanks so much for your reviews, everyone! They're what got me to write this second chapter in the first place [obviously].**

**I don't have the whole story written up yet, but I have it planned pretty far [in my head]. Hopefully it won't be any longer than 10 chapters; and hopefully the characters stay intact. Who knows, though. I might regret even having started this chapter-type story in the first place, as it might halt halfway because of evil Mr. Writer's Block. I'll try to keep him away, though. :P**

**Okay, so enjoy. And thanks for reading! It means a lot. Really. :]**

* * *

When Fishlegs opened the door that evening, the last person he expected to be staring back at him was Ruffnut. But there she was, just a foot away from him, hovering outside his house's door frame.

What was she doing there? And why was she smiling? She never smiled at him before. Especially not so late at night...at his house. Maybe the smile wasn't sincere as it looked. Maybe he did something wrong. What could he have done wrong? He's barely talked to her in the last few days. Maybe she thought he was ignoring her?

Fishlegs began to sweat. He was staring. He was speechless. He didn't know what to do. Or say. He hadn't said anything for over a minute.

"Hello?" Ruffnut's voice interrupted his thoughts. She sounded annoyed.

Right, talking. You're supposed to talk to someone when they come to your door. He should know that. But what do you say to a girl you've only really hung out with when she was with you and your four other friends?

"Hi, Ruff," He managed.

Her smile grew wider.

"Uhm," Fish coughed into his fist. "What are you doing here?"

The smile faded away and was replaced with a scowl. Uh oh, bad move! See, this is why he shouldn't have talked in the first place! At least that kept the frown away.

"What?" She growled.

"What?"

"What did you say?"

"'What are you doing-'" He began, repeating his last sentence.

"I know what you said!" She spat. "Why did you say it?"

Fishlegs was scared. There were quite a few things that frightened the rather large teen, but girls made the top of the list. Especially girls like Ruffnut.

"Well," He started, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's just...late and you never really come over here. Ever. Not even during the daytime; so I thought-"

"So you thought I needed a specific reason to be here?" Ruff insisted.

"Yes," He mumbled. "Er, no. Uhm...j-just tell me what I should say that won't result in you punching me shortly afterward!" Fishlegs was shielding half his body behind the door.

She thought about this for a moment. After a minute or so, she looked a bit calmer, so Fish brought his whole body back into view, thinking it was safe.

"Just say, 'Goodnight'," She finally answered.

He paused. "And you won't hurt me if I say that?"

"I won't hurt you," She confirmed.

Fishlegs coughed into his hand again. "Alright, so...uhm, thanks for coming over, Ruff and...goodnight."

Ruffnut paused and took a moment to look at him. Or was she glaring? "Goodnight." And she turned away. But just before she left the front steps, or Fishlegs had a chance to shut the door; she quickly turned around and punched him in the gut.

"You said you wouldn't punch me!" He groaned, holding his stomach.

"Yeah," She nodded, flipping her hair. "I lied. Get used to it."

* * *

"You punched him?" Astrid asked, bewildered as she braided Ruff's hair. They're were both chilling on a small patch of grass in some random field, when Ruff decided to bring up the certain event from the previous night.

"He actually had the nerve to ask me what I was doing there!"

"What _were_ you doing there?"

"Don't make me punch you, Astrid Hofferson!" Ruffnut warned. "You know I will!"

Astrid stayed firm and tugged on her friend's hair.

"Ow!"

"What were you doing there?" She repeated.

Ruff brought her legs to her chest and rested her chin atop her knees. "I don't know," She answered honestly.

She sighed. "What possessed you to going to Fishlegs' house in the first place?"

"My mom."

Astrid paused. "Oh, you had the talk."

"I've _been_ having the talk," Ruffnut exclaimed, flailing her arms to the side of her body. "For weeks now."

"Yeah, been there."

"How'd you get your mom to stop bugging you?"

"I started dating Hiccup," She smiled.

Ruff raised an eyebrow at her friend and grinned, causing Astrid to pull at her hair again. "Stop that!" Ruffnut growled, pulling her blonde locks away.

She laughed, slipping down the rock she was sitting on, so she was on the grass, too. "So, you tried to go after Fishlegs?"

Ruffnut spun a piece of hair around her finger. "Stupid, right?"

"Does he not like you that way or something?"

Ruff stopped twiddling her fingers and looked up. "Uhm, I don't know. I never really got to ask him that, because-"

"Because you punched him," Astrid finished.

"Hey, he started it!" She exclaimed. She paused. "And I never said I liked him."

"He asked you what you were doing there, Ruff" She interjected, ignoring the last bit. "I asked you the same thing yesterday and you didn't punch _me_."

"That was different," Ruffnut tried.

"How?"

"'Cuz he should have known why I was there!"

Astrid paused, looking at Ruff closely. "Should he have?"

When her friend turned away, she decided to drop it. Astrid was curious, but she also knew Ruffnut was as stubborn as a mule and it'd be a waste of time to try and get an explanation out of her. The two girls sat in silence for a few minutes, when Astrid finally spoke up again.

"What about Snotlout?" She asked. "You guys were pretty cute together."

Ruffnut made a face.

"No?"

She sighed. "I don't know." Pause. "Yeah, 'Lout's cool, I guess. Maybe I'll...I don't know." But Ruff didn't want Snotlout. She wanted Fishlegs. Why did she still like him? She heard what he had to say. She saw how he was acting around her. He was-

Suddenly, thunder cracked above their heads and it started to drizzle, matching Ruff's mood.

"We'd better get home," Astrid said, raising herself up from the ground. She held out a hand to help her friend up.

"Oh, great," She muttered, running through the raindrops. "Like this day could get any worse!"

"It's just a little rain."

"My hair is very sensitive to humidity," Ruff explained.

"Please," Astrid managed an eye roll, while running alongside her friend. "Your hair looks fine."

* * *

When Ruffnut finally stepped into her house and out of the rain, she was drenched. Every inch of her was wet, except for her hair, which was puffed up like a sheep's woolly body. And of course, Tuff was right there, ready to sport a sarcastic comment to her unfortunate condition.

He laughed. "What happened to you? Get in a fight with a-"

She gave her brother a right hook, knocking him to the ground. Then, just as she was about to rush upstairs and comb out her extreme tangled mess, someone knocked at the door.

Ruffnut wasn't exactly sure who she was expecting to be behind the tall piece of wood, but Fishlegs sure didn't make the list of possibilities.

When the door opened, he just continued to stare down at his thumbs, barely glancing her way. "Hey, Ruff. I just wanted to apol...erm, what I mean is-I didn't mean to..." He began to sweat, despite the cool rain pouring on him.

The corners of her lips twitched, tempting to pull themselves upward. Ruffnut was almost hopeful until...

"I just came over to say-" Fishlegs finally looked up and the twiddling stopped. "What happened to your hair?"

_Bam!_ Fishlegs down.

* * *

**Blah, it's shorter than the first chapter. So, I'm kinda hung up on having Tuff in this story, so expect more of him, lol. Also, I'm _really_ bad at chapter stories [that's why I usually only stick to OneShots], so ya'll have to tell me how this was. Constructive criticism is welcome. I can take it, lol. :/ :P Comments are love.**


	3. Why Girls Punch Guys

**A new chapter has been posted! This is when you'll start to realize just how bad I actually am at chapter stories, lol. A huge thank you to Duchess Delanie again [you're probably getting annoyed by all my thank you's, lol], as without her story, "The Art of Running and Hiding", I'd be lost. It's that story that helped me understand just how to write, not just Fishlegs and Ruffnut, but how they act around each other, lol.  
**

**The chapters seem to be getting shorter, but that's because it's more dialog than large paragraphs. Also, I'm trying to get a fair amount of POV's from both Ruff and Fish, but as it happens, we seem to be getting more of Fishlegs at the moment. But don't worry, Ruffnut will get her share, in due time!**

**Hopefully I'll get manage to give reply's to all my reviews/reviewers; I'm just really bad at that. Thanks again for reading! :D**

* * *

Furious, Ruffnut slammed the door on Fishlegs, who was desperately trying to raise himself off the ground.

"So," Her mother asked, a smile in her voice. "Who was that?"

Again, too preoccupied with her cooking, her mom obviously hadn't heard who was at the door or what she had done to him. _Why does she even bother making dinner, anyway? Half the time, the family just grabbed a snack at the Meade Hall._

"Fishlegs."

"Oh?" Now it sounded like she was giggling. Why was she giggling? "And what did he want?"

Suddenly, Ruffnut managed to piece everything together and her mouth dropped open. "You're the reason he was here just now, aren't you?"

Releasing an exasperated sigh, her mother turned around to face her. Her eyes went wide when she spotted Ruff's hair. "Rain?"

Her daughter nodded. There was a pause. Ruffnut raised an eyebrow at her mom.

"Right," She collected her thoughts. "I just think you should give him another chance."

"Okay, so let _him_ take the chance," Ruff suggested. "Don't have him come over here, just 'cuz _you_ told him to 'apologize' to me." _I doubt he even knew what he was apologizing for._

"Fishlegs is a nice boy and-"

"Stupid is more like it." _Stupid and cute._ She shook her head. She didn't just think that.

"Ruffnut," Her mother began, wiping her hands on the apron currently around her waist. "Honey, it's been months since you and Snotlout broke up. I just want to see you happy again."

"No, you just want to see me standing at some alter!" Ruff crossed her arms across her chest.

They both went mute, letting the echo of the last outburst fade throughout the house.

"What happened to the days when we just talked about viking warriors, mom?" The girl twin asked, speaking softly. "Or when you told me stories about the exciting dragon wars that took place here so many years ago."

Her mother sighed. "That was before you started growing into a beautiful young lady." She tucked a piece of blonde hair behind her daughter's ear. Ruffnut was tempted to push her away. She always hated biased comments. Especially when they were directed towards her. "I just want what's best for you."

"Well, I think it'd be _best_ for you to stay out of my social life," Ruff muttered.

"Alright, that's enough," Her mother said, ruffling her own hair. "End of discussion. Up to your room."

Ruffnut mocked her mother under her breath. "Fine," She said, her voice barely audible. "I was heading that way, anyway."

By the time she reached the staircase, she could clearly hear her mom let out another one of those exasperated sighs. Then, she turned her attention, and some of her rage, onto her brother.

"For Thor's Sake, Tuffnut," She heard her mother groan. "What are you doing on the floor!"

Snickering, the girl twin quickly headed to her room before she could get in trouble for that, too.

* * *

"And then," Fishlegs said, finishing up the story. "She punched me." Pause. "Again."

"What'd you do to her?" Hiccup asked, dipping a hot piece of metal into a cool bucket of water. Always hard at work.

"Nothing!" Fishlegs practically screeched. "That's just it. She just punches me for no reason whatsoever."

"Better you than me," The young blacksmith said, practically shivering while considering the days when Ruffnut had done the same to him.

Astrid, who was currently sitting on a chair at Hiccup's side [naturally], released a breath, causing her bangs to slightly fly off her forehead for a moment. "Guys are such idiots." She turned her attention to Hiccup, who was now banging away at said piece of metal. "Right, Hiccup?" She mused.

Barely registering the question, he merely nodded. "Huh? Oh, yeah."

"Did he just agree that he was stupid?" Fishlegs asked, confused.

The girl grinned. "Hiccup never listens very well when he's working."

"It's true," Her boyfriend agreed. Then his head shot up. "Why? What were we talking about?"

Astrid shook her head and stood up. "_I_ know why Ruff's been acting out around you," She told Fish.

"Really?" He asked. "Why?"

"Mmm, can't tell."

The large teen frowned. "Why not?"

"Oh, did I say 'can't'?" She asked, rhetorically. "I meant, I don't wanna."

Hiccup seemed to be paying attention now. "Again, why?"

She shrugged. "Just having some fun."

"Just tell him why Ruffnut's been punching him to death."

"Why don't _you_ tell him?"

"Because I don't know why!" He admitted.

Astrid sighed annoyingly and punched her boyfriend in the shoulder.

"Ow, what was that for?"

Rolling her eyes, she then gave Hiccup a quick peck on the lips, as if to answer his question.

He breathed out and and looked at his girlfriend through slightly hazy eyes. "Oh."

She raised an eyebrow and his eyes shot open wide. "Oh! Fish," He started, turning himself around. "I know why Ruff's been-" But Fishlegs was already gone.

* * *

Fishlegs sat on his favorite chair at his house, reading some dragon book he's read a hundred times before. He could practically recite the whole book, but reading was the only thing that relaxed him, and he could really use some relaxing right now.

Going to Hiccup for help didn't turn out as well as he was hoping, and just ended with him and Astrid making out. The boy sighed and slammed his book shut. Maybe if he thought hard enough he could figure this out.

But, before he had a chance to even start, his father walked through the door. Fishlegs mind went to work. "Hey, Dad!"

"Hey, Fishlegs," He returned, pulling off his vest.

"Uhm," The younger viking stood up and walked across the room. "Listen, I have a question." His father looked over, smiling; ready to help in any way that he could.

His dad wasn't the sharpest axe in the arena, as back when he was growing up, viking's cared more about brawn than brains. But being brainy didn't seem to get him anywhere with _this_ problem, so he was willing to try anything.

"What does it mean when someone punches you?" Fishlegs asked, holding his stomach that seemed to ache whenever he thought about it.

"It probably means you ticked them off," His dad answered. "Why? What'd you do?" His father seemed a little too happy at the idea that his son might have deliberately done something to start a fight with somebody else.

"Nothing!" He exclaimed, repeating almost the same thing he had to Hiccup. "She just punched me for no reason. Twice." He wasn't sure why he found it necessary to add that he's been beat up by a girl more than once. It couldn't be doing much for his image. Not that he really had an image in the first place.

"Wait," His father stopped, holding his hands up in front of him. "You're saying a _girl_ punched you?"

"Yeah, Ruffnut," Fish said. "Why?"

He patted his son's shoulder, smiling. "Congratulations, my son!"

"For what?" He asked, still confused.

"Well, it sounds like _someone's_ got a crush on you."

Fishlegs collapsed.

Finally, when Fish seemed to have regained consciousness minutes later, he still only saw black in front of him. And everything he had discussed with his dad slowly came flooding back.

Ruffnut was punching because she liked him? That didn't make any sense. Of course, girls seldom did. If she had been a dragon, he was have seen this coming. But no one ever thought to write books on girls, the way they did dragons; and now most of those books were useless [though, still fun to read].

It's not like he'd actually ever had experience with girls, anyway. He didn't have a sister and his mom died when he was five. The only girls he'd ever actually talked to were Astrid and Ruff. Though, over the past couple of days, he'd been seeing more of Ruffnut than he had in practically his whole life.

Maybe he should have seen it coming. After all, she had come over his house, late at night...smiling. Fishlegs groaned, causing his head to ache. Astrid was right. Guys _are_ idiots.

Suddenly, a pair of hands picked Fishlegs up from the ground. He opened his eyes to find his father looking back at him.

"So," His dad said, patting his back. "When are you gonna tell her?"

"Tell who what?"

"Tell that girl that you like her back," He laughed. "You gotta _tell_ her. No punching. Only the girls are allowed to do that."

"Well," Fishlegs wracked his brain. He could feel his forehead sweating. "The thing is, I don't really like Ruff...that way."

"Oh." His father paused. Then, after a short moment, he patted his son's back again. "In that case, you're _still_ gonna have to tell her."

Fish was afraid of that.

* * *

**I was originally gonna end the chapter on Fishlegs passing out. But then it would have been too short, lol. Also, the story's far from over. So, don't go thinking Fish tells Ruffnut how he feels [or should I say _doesn't_ feel?] and that's the end of it. Oh no, far from it, my friends! *Evil laugh* That is, if everything I have planned out for them goes well, lol. *Ahem***** Comments are love.**


	4. Something About Books

***EDIT* I could not think of a good title for this chapter. Oh well, haha.**

**Hey guys! So sorry for the late update! This chapter has been in my head forever, I just never had a time I actually felt like writing it down. I think because of that, the idea might have changed a bit. Oh well. I hope the Fishlegs/Ruffnut stuff doesn't seem too forced or anything. You'll see during the first part that it kinda goes Fishlegs' point of view, then Ruffnut's point of view; and back and forth and back. I hope that's not too confusing to understand. I'm really starting to regret turning this into a chapter story the farther I go along, but as long as people are still reading, I'm happy. :]**

**Also, I haven't put the disclaimer up for a while; but no, I still don't own How to Train Your Dragon, lol.**

* * *

Halfway to Ruff's house, Fish was preparing a speech for what he was going to say. But everything he thought up could obviously be taken the wrong way, especially by Ruffnut. He should have worn padding.

While making the final turn to head to her house, however, he spotted her not too far away from him, sitting alone at a large rock. He breathed in deep. It was now or never.

"R-Ruff?" He said, cautiously making his way towards her.

She didn't seem to hear him. Either that or she was ignoring him. He guessed it was probably the second one. He repeated her name again, stuttering in the process. Finally, she turned around. After a moment, she nodded at him. Taking that as an _almost_ invitation, Fishlegs sat down on the rock beside her.

"Your hair looks nice." It was the first thing he noticed, therefore the first thing he commented on. It was brushed down this time, unlike the last time he saw it; and instead of being sported in its usual braids, she had just put it in a simple ponytail, the ribbon resting at the back of her neck. It was black in color. Probably so it didn't look as girlie as a ribbon should. He hadn't ever noticed just how much hair she actually had before.

"What are you staring at?" She insisted.

Fishlegs blinked and looked at her. "N-nothing."

There was silence.

"Did you actually come here for something?" She asked. "Or were you just too lazy to find another rock to sit on?"

He should just leave. Why did it matter? If he showed no signs of interest near her, wouldn't she just take the hint and move on? Wouldn't that be better for everyone? No punching, no heart breaking. Fishlegs sighed.

"I wanted to apologize," He finally said.

Ruffnut turned, a scowl suddenly on her face. "Why?"

Fish tried to stay firm, but his voice started cracking. "B-because of the whole-"

"Did my mother set you up to this?"

"What?" His eyes went wide. "N-no. I just..." He looked down, breathing in and breathing out. "Look, I just...I don't...share your...feelings." He looked up at her.

Ruff made a face. "Don't share my feelings for what?"

She just couldn't make this easy for him. "When you randomly came over the other night. That wasn't to...tell me something?"

She shook her head to prove she wasn't following.

He threw his hands to his side and let out a sigh, that was probably supposed to sound irritated; but only came out nervous from him. "I don't know. I guess I'm wrong. People said you acted in such a way because..." A lump formed in his throat, but he quickly swallowed it. "Because you liked me."

Now it was Ruffnut's turn to widen her eyes. He knew why she came over that night? He was much smarter than she gave him credit for. What should she do? Maybe she should just act oblivious. Ruff started laughing out loud, startling Fishlegs. "You thought I _liked_ you?" Or act rude. I guess that worked, too.

His face went red. That was obviously not the reply he was expecting. "Well...why _did_ you come over my house so late the other night?"

Ruffnut put her brain to work. This answer would only turn out good if she answered quickly. No sign of thinking about it. "I-I lost that book I borrowed from you. And I was just coming over to apologize for it." She hoped he wouldn't ask why she chose to do this at night, of all times.

"You borrowed a book from me?"

"Well, without permission," She replied, with a shrug. "Some might call it stealing."

"More than some," Fishlegs added under his breath, not intending Ruff to hear. He didn't know she happened to have one of the best pair of ears in the village. "What book was it?"

Again, Ruffnut had to put her mind to work. What was this? The day of many questions? She felt it was if Thor was telling her this lie was a bad idea in the first place. She was never on his good side. "A...dragon book."

_Gee, that narrows it down_, Fishlegs thought, mentally rolling his eyes. He tried to think of another question to ask to hide the embarrassment of the moment. Ruffnut liking him; yeah right. What in Odin's name was he thinking? He was just Fishlegs. And she was...well, Ruffnut. A pretty but also slightly crazy viking chick. She usually went after slightly crazy viking guys. And he was pretty sure he didn't fall under that category.

"So, is that it?" Ruff asked, breaking the silence around them. "No more 20 questions?"

He seemed to ignore the that. "So then, why did you punch me?" After all, that's what got him into this mess in the first place, wasn't it?

"The first or second time?"

"First," He answered. "Is that your way of apologizing?"

She lowered her eyebrows, but tried to stay calm. Punching him again would do no good. "No, I just got nervous."

"You sure have a funny way of showing it," He let out, holding his stomach dramatically.

"I don't only punch when I'm nervous you know," She said, lifting up a fist.

Fishlegs tried to stay firm, but she noticed him cringe back a bit. "Okay, point taken."

Her hand lowered into her lap, and stared at the ground. She sighed and silence took over again. "Sorry," She finally mumbled. "About the whole late at night thing. And sorry about losing your book," She quickly added.

"No problem," He returned, still slightly confused on the whole book matter, but deciding not to really bring it up again. He realized she was looking at him and quickly met her gaze. It was then he noticed just how close she was to him. Their faces were barely inches apart.

"Ruffnut...?" He choked out, questionably. When she didn't answer, he said her name a few octaves higher. "What are you doing?"

"Shut up," She almost growled. "I'm just thinking."

"Could you try to think not so close to my face?"

She didn't say anything after that. She just breathed in from her nose slowly and closed her eyes. Fishlegs braced himself for the worst, assuming she was trying some new type of torture he wasn't aware of; though he really had no idea what he said or did wrong this time. He held his breath and squeezed his eyes shut, when suddenly Ruff's lips pressed firmly against his right cheek.

Startled, his eyes popped open and he jerked away. She didn't seem to notice. She just opened her eyes and breathed out. There seemed to be a weird look on her face that Fishlegs had never seen on her before, but within a second it was gone; and she was sporting her too common scowl. He probably just imagined the weird flicker still in her eyes.

Before Fish had a chance to ask what that was all about, Ruffnut mumbled something about how late it was getting and ran off in the direction of her house. He didn't bother telling her it was only a little after noon.

Then after sitting there a few moments longer, he absently rubbed his cheek, trying to make sense of what happened in the past 5 minutes, but he was clueless. Apparently, when girls like you they punch you and when they hate you, they kiss you. He shook his head and quickly stood up. Yep, it was official. Girls were definitely crazy.

* * *

As soon as Ruffnut entered her house, her mother was naturally there, doing some sort of womanly duty. And of course, chock full of questions. "Hi, dear. Why are you home so early?"

She decided not to beat around the bush. "I talked to Fishlegs."

"Oh?" The 'oh' was basically just a curious 'oh'. Not like her last I-already-now-what's-going-on-but-I'm-going-to-ask-it-anyway 'oh'. Ruff was thankful for that. Nothing's worse than a mother asking your once crush to apologize for something that was actually your doing, just to get a moment of talking between you and him; twice.

Ruffnut didn't expand on the subject like her mother was hoping she would. "Then I ran into Snotlout."

"Oh." This 'oh' was pretty identifiable. She wished her mother wouldn't say sorry or anything; it was just make everything that much worse. "How's he?"

Ruffnut tried to smile. "He's good. I'm planning on meeting him at Meade Hall tonight. Just to, you know, catch up and stuff."

She looked up from her sewing. "That's great, sweetie."

Ruff just nodded. After a several seconds of silence, she assumed the talk was over and headed for the stairs. As soon as she flopped on her bed, she could feel tears brimming in her eyes. She was almost tempted to punch her own face just to push them back in. She'd been acting like such a girl lately. She hated that.

Why had she ever bothered to see Fishlegs in the first place? And why so late at night? That must have been the dumbest move she's ever made in her life. Of course Fishlegs didn't like her. It would fit the complete pattern of things. It was so Ruffnut to go after a guy that doesn't like her. And the one guy that ever did, she couldn't stand. She'd barely talked to him in the last few months.

And now she had a date with him. Tonight. No, it wasn't a date. No one ever called it that. It was just a get-together among friends. She was sure there would be other people there. It's not like the hall was something you could just rent out for your own enjoyment.

She hoped Fishlegs wouldn't be there. It would be mega awkward. Plus, she wasn't sure she could keep herself from punching him again. It took her weeks to get over Hiccup, and she still wasn't sure she was completely over him yet. After all, the boy was beyond cute. The tears trembled behind her lids again, but she didn't dare let them escape.

Suddenly, someone knocked on her door, interrupting her thoughts. "Go away, Tuffnut," Ruff yelled, making sure not to let her voice crack.

"Actually, it's me," The voice called back.

Ruffnut groaned to herself.

* * *

**I hope the end of the chapter kinda seems like a cliff hanger. But I'm never good at those, so I don't know, lol. ****Thanks for reading! Comments are love.**


	5. It's NOT a Date

**Thanks for all your comments! They make me smile! :D**

**Okay, so after seeing that a few people were wondering just what happened when Ruffnut ran into Snotlout, I decided to add that to the chapter. But, as I can't just go back in time, I brought it up as a dream. The whole situation in the dream is what happened between them earlier. Ruff's just remembering it in a dream. I thought that'd be easier than her just talking about it to herself. I hope that makes sense? Beware, it's a bit drabble-y!**

**But, with the unexpected dream sequence, the chapter was turning out to be way too long than I was aiming for, so we won't be checking in with Fishlegs 'till the _next_ chapter. Which is a real shame, as it's gonna be loads of fun [in my opinion], lol. Also, I can't believe how much of Snotlout I'm bringing into this story. I hadn't planned that in the original idea, really. Anyways, I hope all goes well for future chapters.**

* * *

Ruffnut tried to ignore him and slumped into a more comfortable position on her bed.

"Ruffnut?" The voice called again. "It's me, Snotlout!"

"Yeah, I know who it is," She grumbled. "I thought we agreed to meet at Meade Hall. And...hours from now!"

"I know," He said, his voice muffled because of the door. "But I was wondering if..." He huffed. "Ruff, I feel really stupid talking to a door."

She sighed, annoyed. "Alright." Ruffnut got up from her bed and opened the door. She was greeted by Snotlout and his large toothy grin.

"Nice ribbon."

Ruffnut immediately grabbed at the back of her hair and pulled it over her shoulder, so she could mess with it. After her frizzed out catastrophe yesterday, she hadn't bothered to put it back up in its natural braids. Though they dealt better in Berk's constant humidity, it was a pain to get them that way.

Having seen her just a bit before, he'd obviously already seen her different hairstyle. But, with all commotion of the moment, he apparently didn't really take the time to notice it. Ruffnut absently ran her fingers through her blond strands.

She seemed to recall Fishlegs making a similar comment on her hair, but she couldn't really remember it. After a few short seconds, she realized she was acting girlie again and dropped her hands to her side; causing her ponytail to flip back to its original place behind her.

"So," Snotlout said, rocking on his heels. Ruff glanced up. She'd almost forgotten he was there. "I was wondering," He started. "If maybe we could hang out a little, before our actual date."

Ruffnut cringed. She balled her hands into fists and grew red in the face. "We never said it was a date," She growled.

He laughed. "Oh yes we did."

"We didn't," She stated firmly, gritting her teeth. Before he had a chance to intervene again, she interrupted him. "Besides, I was actually thinking about taking a nap before met up at the hall."

"Oh, but-"

"See you later!" She interrupted again, slamming the door on Snotlout's face.

"Alright," He called, amusement in his voice. "Bye!"

Ruffnut tried to release the tension from herself by unclenching her fists. When that didn't seem to work, she flopped onto her somewhat comfy bed and closed her eyes. She didn't realize she was actually tired, 'till sleep overtook her.

* * *

_I didn't know where to go. All I knew was I had to get away from there. Stupid. That's what I was. I realized that now. But then, maybe he was stupid, too. Besides first guessing why I had actually been at his house in the first place, he actually bought the whole "borrowing book" story. I rolled my eyes._

_I kinda wished I could take the whole situation back. Especially that last bit. I hadn't actually kissed him, did I? That was pretty dumb. Kinda desperate. I quickly shook away the thoughts. No way in Hel, was I, Ruffnut Thorston, going to be one of those desperate girls. I was just...curious, that's all. Yeah.  
_

_This whole boy thing was messing me up in the head. I needed to think about something else for a while. Or rather, not think at all. It was still pretty early, despite what I had recently mumbled to Fishlegs; maybe Astrid would be up for a much needed duel in the arena._

_Smiling to myself, and excited to push all this boy business away for a while, I ran in the direction of the Hofferson house, not even bothering to watch where I was going. Which, to my dismay, caused me to bump right into somebody; knocking me to the hard ground._

_I looked up._

"_Ruffnut," Snotlout said, smiling. "Haven't seen you in a while." He didn't bother helping me up, probably knowing full well I wouldn't have accepted the gesture, anyway. I pulled myself up quickly and dusted off my tunic._

"_Well," He continued, rubbing the back of his neck. "I mean, I _have_ seen you around, obviously. I just never really got the time to talked to you lately." He paused, letting silence roll between us._

_I nodded, trying to think of something to say. I tried something simple. "Hey, Snotlout."_

_He beamed. "So, what was with the running? Where are you going in such a hurry?"_

_I glared at him and crossed my arms across my chest. "What's it to _you_?"_

_'Lout laughed. "I sure have missed you."_

_I rolled my eyes. I really didn't need this right now. Up until now, Snotlout and I had been doing a pretty good job at avoiding each other. It was a wonder he even decided to strike up a conversation with me; despite the running into each other [literally]._

_I secretly hoped maybe Astrid would magically show up, interrupting the situation, and saving me from any further conversation with him. But, as usual, no such luck. She was probably off with Hiccup somewhere. I inwardly sneered._

"_Ruff?" Snotlout said, knocking on my forehead. "Anybody in there? Hellooo?"_

_I swatted his hand away. It was a wonder he was still smiling. "Yeah, I've...missed you, too." I hoped it sounded convincing. I mean, I had missed him, of course. He was one of my good friends. I just don't think he missed me like I missed him. The thought made my stomach lurch and I thanked the Gods I hadn't eating anything recently._

_His widening smile spoke for itself. "So," He said, kicking at the ground, looking suddenly shy. "Judging by the way you crashed into me, I assume you've got somewhere to be; but, if you're free tonight..."_

Oh no! Astrid!_ I thought, as loudly as I could. _For the love of Thor, where are you?_ My response to his last comment was just a stare.  
_

_He took that as a chance to continue. "I was wondering if maybe you'd want to...hang out or something at Meade Hall tonight."_

_Odin, I really didn't need this right now. But suddenly, something clicked in my head. My previous conversation with Astrid:_

Astrid paused. "Oh, you had the talk."

"I've been having the talk," I exclaimed, flailing my arms to the side of my body. "For weeks now."

"Yeah, been there."

"How'd you get your mom to stop bugging you?"

"I started dating Hiccup," She smiled.

_And, as I had already gotten to the point of turning off my thinking for a bit, since I was already planning to practice a few swings in the arena, my brain began to try to pull out what little thinking it could, which could never result in a good thing. Maybe Thor was giving me a sign. Since Fishlegs obviously felt differently towards me, maybe I was supposed to end up with Snotlout._

_Sure, I could barely stand the guy, or stand to be in the same room with him for more than a few minutes, but the Gods worked in mysterious ways sometimes. I shook away the crazy thoughts. No, it was probably a different sign. Yeah. Maybe they were telling me that Astrid was busy and I should hang out with Snotlout instead._

_That made sense. I needed some time to take my mind off things. I needed some fun. After all, it's not like it was a date or anything. Just a get together among some old friends. Yeah.  
_

"_Sure," I finally said. "Sounds like fun."_

_He gave another one of those smiles again. If his teeth weren't so dirty, it might have put the sun to shame. "I'll see you later tonight, then."_

_I managed the best smile I could muster up. I wonder if it looked as fake as it felt. "Alright."_

"_Alright," He repeated, but with much more enthusiasm than me. "It's a date!"

* * *

_

Ruffnut woke with a start and groaned. _Darn,_ She thought. _We _had_ called it a date._ Well, _he_ actually called it one. She was just gonna have to clear that up with him later.

She looked outside. The sun was already starting to set. Ruff sighed. Guess she should start getting ready. She hopped from her bed and glanced down at her clothes. There was really no need to change. After all, it wasn't actually a date. She hoped she would sound just as convincing to Snotlout as she did to herself.

Then she caught sight at her hair through the broken piece of glass, in the right corner of her room, she had been calling a mirror. She gave another sigh, twirling a blonde lock around her index finger. Who's to say she can't fix her hair? It was in dire need of attention, and she kinda missed her braids.

So, grabbing for her brush she got to work. And, in no time, Ruffnut was sporting her original hairstyle. She almost smiled. She was starting to feel herself again.

Another knock then came at her door, making the grin on her face flip upside down. "Snotlout, I told you; I'll meet you _there_!"

Tuffnut snickered from behind the wood. Ruff rolled her eyes and went to open the door. And there was her brother, a smirk on his lips.

"Hey, you fixed your hair! Thank goodness. I was afraid I was gonna have to start telling everyone I was related to a sheep."

Scowling, Ruffnut raised her hand, already forming into a fist. Tuffnut mocked her action. Then suddenly, surprising them both, Ruff's expression changed and she lowered her arm, bringing it to the side of her body.

She quickly pushed past him. "Not now, Tuff."

Confused, the twin boy followed his sister down the hall. "What's up?"

"Nothing."

"Hey," He interjected, blocking her path. "You know that weird thing twins have where whatever they feel, they're sibling feels, too?"

Ruff raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"Well, we don't have that," He admitted. Then, quickly added, "But, I can see that something's up; so spill it!"

She looked up at her brother. They didn't usually talk, unless they were spouting profanities at each other during a good tackle. But when they _did_ talk, it wasn't usually about feelings. If this was her mother's doing, Ruffnut swore she was gonna pay.

Taking the silence between them as a hint, Tuffnut tried to talk about something else; having no idea that was the exact thing upsetting his sister. "So, I heard you've got a date with Snotlout."

"It's not a date," Ruffnut hissed.

"That's not what he told me," He said, chuckling. "Or anyone else for that matter."

_Oh, great,_ She thought to herself. _So the whole village knows now?_

"What happened to Fishlegs?"

Ruffnut glared at her brother. How could he possibly have known about _that_?

Reading her mind, or maybe just her expression, Tuffnut smirked. "I wasn't completely passed out on the floor when you talked with Mom yesterday."

"You really should mind your own business, beef brain!"

"Well excuse me for being a brother!" He shouted back.

"You're about sixteen years too late for that!"

Scowling, Tuff extended his hand, ready to grab Ruffnut by the shoulders and bring her down. But, already prepared for this, she quickly grabbed his wrist and twisted it at just the right angle to bring _him_ down instead. In a normal move like that, he'd be up within a second, but she was already running to the door.

"Bye, Mom!" She waved, closing the door just as Tuffnut was racing towards her.

* * *

**So, I can't say I'm very proud of this chapter. The next one's better, I think. This chapter just feels like one of those, not-very-entertaining-but-you-need-it-anyway-to-continue-on-with-the-story thing. I hope you guys like it enough. Anyways, thanks so much for reading! *Hugs* Comments are love. :]**


	6. Why Guys Punch Guys

**New chapter! My chapter's seem to be getting a little longer. I can't help but feel proud of that, lol. Okay, so this chapter actually takes place right/soon after Chapter 4. So, basically, it's during Chapter 5, but instead of in Ruffnut's point of view, we're visiting Fishlegs this time. The beginning's sort of drabble-y, but the rest is good, I think. Not really a Ruff chapter. Her's will be next, lol. And then hopefully I'll get one where they're together again. 'Cuz those are the funnest chapters. Thanks for reading!**

**Nope, still don't own HTTYD. :P  
**

* * *

So, Ruffnut was crazy. That much Fishlegs was sure of. Unfortunately, he still didn't know _why_ she was crazy. He didn't know why she had supposedly stolen a book from him. Or why she had chosen that particular night to tell him she misplaced it. Or why every time he saw her, he ended up with some sort of pain.

He rubbed at his cheek again. The one she had for some unknown reason kissed. It burned to the touch. And when his hand left the spot, he felt a sudden chill. Fishlegs shook off the uneasiness. He didn't like feeling things he'd never felt before. He preferred things to stay the same. But something told him, that after today, things were gonna be different with Ruffnut; though he still didn't know why.

He was almost...confused. Fishlegs wasn't usually confused. He always seemed to be on the up and up...but that was more with dragons. And, as far as he was concerned, Ruffnut wasn't a dragon. Though he was sure if given the chance, she could certainly breath fire.

He blamed his father. He's the one who said girls only punched you when they liked you. Why should have he believed that? He couldn't even count the times his friend Snotlout had been punched; and he didn't think that _that_ many girls could actually fall for his not-so-suave pick up lines. But what did Fishlegs know? 'Lout had more dates than Fish had books. And he had _a lot_.

He thought back to what had just happened with Ruffnut. He must have looked like such an idiot sitting there...so sure someone like her could actually be crushing on him...and even then, turning her down. The spot on his cheek started to tingle. The unnatural feeling startled Fishlegs and he quickly rubbed his hand hard against his right cheek, wishing it would just disappear.

As soon as he entered his house, he was happy to find it was empty. Good, he didn't really want to explain what happened with Ruff anyway. His first stop was his bookshelf. So he could find out just what book Ruffnut had allegedly stolen.

After a moment of inspection he realized-

"Nothing's missing," He said aloud, running his fingers across the binds of his books. The bookshelf, which he had built himself, was stuffed to the brim with books; leaving no space for anything else. Which meant, if there _was_ a book missing, he could tell.

Suddenly, Fishlegs' eyes flashed to a blank spot on the third shelf. The book to the right of the space was slightly toppled over, so it rested on the book at the left side. That made him relax a little. Okay, so she'd taken a book. There was still the question to why, but this was good enough for him. For now.

Satisfied, he slipped into his favorite chair and closed his eyes. But, within an instant, they popped back open and he reached for whatever was underneath him that was making him oddly uncomfortable. He pulled it out and noticed it was a book.

The book he had been reading earlier. He shrugged and placed it on the arm of the chair. Then, just as suddenly as finding the book, he did a double take. That book was the book that was missing from the shelf! Checking to make sure, Fish rushed back to his bookshelf and placed the book in the only space there.

A perfect fit. His shoulders drooped. Okay, so she _was_ lying. Why did she lie about taking a book? He shouldn't have been surprised. Ruffnut was nothing, if not a liar. But then, if she didn't come over about the book, why _had_ she come over?

Fishlegs sighed, slumping back into the chair. He really wish he could let this go, but even he knew that was hopeless. He was all too good at over-analyzing things, 'cuz he that involved thinking. And if there was one thing he was good at; it was thinking. He was never good at _not_ thinking. And as nothing was stopping him now, he thought.

But even he could grow tired of thinking. Especially something like _this_. So, he shut his eyes, and willed for sleep.

* * *

Hours later, his stomach rumbled, forcing him awake. Fish assumed it was late, judging by the lack of light shining through his front window.

It wasn't until he made a glance at his bookshelf that he remembered what he had been thinking about earlier. His stomach growled again. With another sigh, he forced himself off the comfortable chair. Perhaps a quick snack at Meade Hall would take his mind off things.

When he got there and opened the door to the hall, the muffled noise from behind the door got even louder, if possible. He wasn't sure what else he was expecting. Of course half the tribe would be here. It was the weekend. The perfect time to hang out and talk and...well, drink.

He shut the door and walked around to the end of the hall, hoping the common buffet they always had out hadn't already been wiped clean this particular evening. Everywhere Fishlegs looked he saw friends smiling, laughing and just having fun.

It almost made him break out in a grin and forget everything that had been bothering him lately, until his eyes fell on Ruffnut, sitting across the way at some random table. But it wasn't really her that caught Fish's eye; it was who was next to her.

Snotlout. Fishlegs watched at his friend wrapped a meaty arm around Ruff, laughing and slurping down the rest of his ale. It wasn't all that surprising, of course. At least, it shouldn't have been. Ruff and him had been on and off again more times than he could count.

But seeing her there with him caused something to click inside of him. He didn't know what it was. One of those new feelings he was unaware of. But he didn't wish for this one to go away. In fact, the longer he stared at them, the larger the feeling grew.

After many moments of staring, Ruffnut's eyes suddenly flashed up and met Fishlegs; but within seconds, her head was back down and her eyes seemed to quite enjoy the floor. It happened so fast Fishlegs had to wonder if he merely imagined it. The large viking teen watched as Snotlout whispered something in Ruff's ear, with which she quickly replied with a slight shake of the head.

Laughing, 'Lout got up headed to the back of the hall. Not really sure what was controlling him; though he was sure it wasn't his brain, Fishlegs followed. He slinked out the back door and met up with Snotlout outside. His friend turned around, a broad smile on his face.

"Hey, Fishy!" He said. "What's-"

But he didn't get to finish, because, using all the strength he could muster up, Fishlegs punched him. He wasn't sure where he had hit him, or if he'd done any damage; all Fish knew was, seconds later, he was on the ground, passed out.

* * *

"You punched him?" Astrid asked, incredulously. She took a wrapped piece of cool fish from Hiccup and pressed it to Fishlegs left eye; now as black as Toothless' scales.

"Hey, he punched me, too."

"Because you punched him first!"

Fishlegs could only shrug. He held his hand up, holding the make-shift icepack in place.

"What were you thinking?" The young blacksmith asked, going back to his work station as if nothing happened.

Despite the situation, Fish laughed. "Uhm, that's just it, actually. I _wasn't_ thinking."

The blonde shook her head. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you'd gone berserk."

Fishlegs face flushed slightly. "How's Snotlout?"

"He's fine," Astrid answered, pulling up a chair and sitting beside the bruised teen. "You managed to sock him in the arm or something; but no major damage was done."

Fish was thankful for that, but at the same time, kinda upset. "Is he mad?"

"More like confused," She admitted. "You know that Snotlout is always more than ready to take on a fight, but I don't think he knew _why_ you chose then to fight him."

"He's not the only one," Hiccup added.

Astrid studied Fishlegs closely. "Why _did_ you do it?"

He pulled the wrapped fish off his face and cautiously blinked his black eye. "I don't know."

Feeling an odd Deja Vu, as if she'd had this conversation before, and quite recently; she let out an loud sigh. "What had possessed you to randomly punch Snotlout in the first place?"

"I saw him with Ruffnut," He replied, suddenly, surprising himself.

Astrid leaned back, a questionable look on her face.

"Yeah, I heard they got back together," Hiccup said, adding another bit to the conversation. "Again."

She raised an eyebrow at Fishlegs. "Why should that bother you?"

"Who said it bothered me?"

"Well, why else would you punch one of your best friends soon after seeing that?"

He paused, placing the cloth back over his eye. "I don't know." He repeated again.

Hiccup shook his head from across the way. "You're right, Astrid. Guys _are_ idiots."

She looked over at her boyfriend, an amused smirk on her face. "Look who's talking." Her eyes glanced down to the bottom of his tunic. Curious, he followed her gaze to see a light flame licking its way up his clothes. He screamed, patting out the small fire.

She laughed then brought her attention back to Fish. She could tell by the way his face was scrunched up that he was thinking. It was actually more like Fishlegs' normal face, as he never went a moment _without_ thinking.

Astrid smirked, then went back to talking to Hiccup. "So, Ruff's back with Snotlout?"

He nodded.

"Where'd you hear that?"

"Snotlout."

"Nice." Astrid said. "Well, good for her. I always thought they made a..." She stopped in mid-sentence, turning to see Fishlegs, who's face had went bright red. She could almost see the steam rising off the top of his head. "Oh my Gods," She nearly whispered.

"What's wrong?" Her boyfriend questioned.

"Fishlegs is jealous!" She seemed to squeal at the idea.

"What?" Fish asked. "Of who?"

"Snotlout!" She was grinning wider than an alligator now.

"Why would I be jealous of 'Lout?"

This was getting way too ridiculous for Astrid's taste. "Oh, for the love of-Because you like Ruffnut!"

"What?" Hiccup and Fishlegs shouted in unison.

"_That's_ why you punched him!"

Fish quickly shook his head, dropping the clothed up fish in the process. "Th-that's crazy."

He couldn't like Ruffnut. That didn't make sense. He already told her he didn't like her. Why would he suddenly like her? A stinging tingle shot through his face, but it wasn't from his bad eye. It was at that spot on his right cheek. The spot she had kissed him. He brought his hand to it and blushed.

His hand then dropped. No. No way did he like Ruffnut! He didn't. He couldn't. He...Oh, Thor, he liked her.

Astrid watched in amusement as realization flooded over his face. Unable to hide her inner female instincts, she shot up from her chair.

Noticing this, Hiccup spoke up. "Hey, where are you going?"

"To, uh, the well!" She called back, picking up a pail from the floor. She quickly tipped the bucket out the window, keeping a firm grip on it. The sound of splashing was heard shortly after. "You're out of water!" And, within an instant, she was gone.

"Dude, I think she just dumped the rest of your water outside," Fishlegs stated.

"Huh," Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "Why would she do that?"

The question seemed to evaporate into the air, as silence overtook the shop. Why _would_ she do that?

* * *

**So, I don't really have anything to say, lol. I hope this chapter doesn't make it seem like the stories going to fast. I'm really bad at that. Anyways, thanks so much for reading! Even though I'm awful at keeping up with replying to reviews, it doesn't mean I don't read them. They're what keep me going. :] Comments are love!**


	7. What Happened

**A/N**: *Steps in slowly* H-hi, guys. *Coughs* Alright, so I know it's been a while. Apparently my last posting was August 2nd, heh heh. So sorry! I don't really have an excuse for putting this off for that long, and I'm certain this chapter doesn't make up for it - though I'd like to believe future chapters will. But, I'm just happy to be back working on this. I missed this story a lot, lol.

Anyways, this chapter picks up in the middle of the last chapter, but instead of being in Fishlegs' POV, we're visiting Ruffnut this time. To anyone still out there, thank you for reading! You guys are the best! Below is a very lame summary of each chapter, in case you forget what's happened and don't feel like re-reading, lol.

**Quick summary**:

_Chapter 1: Ruffnut thinks about guys. She visits Astrid only to find Hiccup there with her. She goes home, thinks about Fishlegs, then heads off to his place._

_Chapter 2: Fishlegs asks why Ruffnut's there. She punches him. Ruffnut tells Astrid she punched him. She goes home. Fishlegs come over to apologize. Ruffnut punches him again._

_Chapter 3: Ruffnut talks to her mom about Fishlegs. Fishlegs talks to Hiccup about Ruffnut. Fishlegs tells his dad that Ruff punched him. His dad says he likes her. Fishlegs says he doesn't like her back. His dad says he's got to tell her._

_Chapter 4: Fishlegs tells Ruffnut he doesn't feel the same way about her. Ruffnut said she doesn't like him; she simply came over to apologize for "borrowing" one of his books. Ruffnut kisses him. Ruffnut comes home and tells her mom about her encounter with Snotlout. Snotlout shows up at her door._

_Chapter 5: Ruffnut and Snotlout talk about their "date". Ruffnut falls asleep, remembering her encounter with Snotlout earlier. Ruffnut talks to Tuffnut about Fishlegs. Ruffnut leaves for Meade Hall._

_Chapter 6: Fishlegs finds out none of his books are missing. Fishlegs falls asleep and wakes up feeling hungry. He goes to Meade Hall, sees Snotlout with Ruffnut and punches him. Fishlegs tells Astrid he punched Snotlout. Astrid realizes Fishlegs is jealous. Astrid heads off to the well to tell Ruffnut._

**Disclaimer**: I do not own HTTYD or any of its characters.

* * *

Ruffnut picked at the food in front of her, wondering why she had even asked for anything to eat in the first place. Since she got there, more food made it to the floor than to her mouth.

Next to her, Snotlout was gobbling down his dinner as if it were his last. When he was finished with that, he left for a moment and returned with a full pint of mead.

"So," He said, turning to Ruff. "Enjoying the date so far?" She had the urge to slap that smirk right off his face.

"It's not a date," She hissed for probably the tenth time that night.

But it _was_ a date.

Though on the outside it easily looked like a simple night-out among friends, any girl who's ever dated Snotlout, which was pretty much any girl in the village under the age of eighteen, knew this was how his dates usually worked out.

The only difference between a get-together and a date with Snotlout was that near the end of one of them, there was always a kiss. Ruffnut would make sure that wouldn't happen.

"You're not eating," He noted.

"I'm not hungry."

"Oh," He paused and reached over for his glass. "Thirsty?"

_Not for anything in your cup_, She wanted to say. But instead she just shook her head. He shrugged and took a swig himself. It was his third glass as far as she had counted, but he might have chugged a few more down when she wasn't paying attention.

Just then, a few friends of 'Lout's showed up at his table. They exchanged greetings when one of them made a glance at Ruff:

"Who's this?"

Snotlout wrapped his arm around her. "This is Ruffnut, my...friend."

She dared to look up. "Hi."

"Nice," The shorter of the two grinned.

Snotlout smacked the guy in the arm and pulled away from Ruffnut. "I'm just gonna hang out with these two for a bit, if that's okay?"

She nodded and went back to playing with her food. Of course, to her dismay, 'hanging out' simply meant chatting it up with his friends. She kinda hoped they would leave the table.

Ruffnut frowned as he downed another pint of mead. Thanks to his size, he could usually hold almost ten pints before it got to his head. But from what she's been counting, he was getting pretty close.

She tried to tune out what they were talking about, despite being only inches away - especially when she seemed to become the subject. She lifted her eyes away from her plate and explored the room.

No sign of Astrid. As usual, she was probably over Hiccup's doing..whatever. She wished Astrid was there. She really could use someone to talk to. Well, someone _else_, anyway.

Then, just as that thought left Ruffnut's head, her eyes met with Fishlegs' from across the room. Quickly, she looked down at the floor.

_"What in Thor's name is _he_ doing here?"_ She thought to herself. She felt stupid for thinking it, of course. It was the end of the week. It was Meade Hall! This was one of the best times you could find any viking cramped in the village from dawn 'till dusk. Everyone except Astrid and Hiccup, it seemed.

Snotlout let out a long laugh followed by a bubbly hiccup and wrapped his arm around her again. "Nature's calling," He slurred, as if she really cared. "I'll just be gone for a second. You won't leave me while I'm gone, right?"

With her head still down, Ruffnut shook her head. He let out another hearty laugh, patted her back and stood up.

As soon as he left the table, Ruffnut glanced over to where he'd been sitting. She noticed three glasses beside her. She checked each one – all empty. She grumbled a few choice words under her breath and crossed her arms over her chest.

Snotlout's friends were still there, but they didn't seem to care what she was doing. Either that or they were too drunk to notice.

Seconds later, without thinking, Ruff found her eyes flickering up to the same spot she had seen Fishlegs just moments ago. She was ready to look away if she had to, when she noticed he wasn't there anymore.

_Good riddance._

Suddenly, a commotion was heard outside. It was loud enough to cause the whole group in the hall to quiet down. Just then, Snotlout stormed back into the hall, grumbling something under his breath. His right hand was trying its best to support his left arm; while his other hand, clenched into a tight fist, pushed open the front door to Meade Hall.

* * *

"And he never came back," Ruffnut said, telling her story to Astrid, who had shown up at the well earlier, mumbling about having something important to tell her.

There was silence for a bit, then Astrid spoke up. "Do you know what happened?"

Ruff made a face. "No, I haven't spoken to 'Lout since."

The other blond bit her lip, messing with the empty bucket in her hands.

"Your turn."

Astrid blinked. "Huh?"

"You said you wanted to tell me something, too," Ruffnut replied. "I already said what was on my mind, so now you go."

"Oh," Her eyes darted around. "Forget it. It's nothing."

Ruff knew her friend well enough to know when she was keeping a secret. "Ast, what's up?"

"Do you have a _guess_ to what might have happened to Snotlout last night?"

"Yeah, he probably got into a drunken fight with some other viking," She answered with a shrug. "Possibly a dragon. I saw the bruise on his arm before he left. It was pretty bad."

"Do you know who the other viking was?"

Ruffnut was already getting tired of these questions. It was obvious by the way she was asking them, that she knew something Ruffnut didn't. "Do you?"

"I-I can't say."

"Why not?"

Astrid was already regretting coming out there, ready to reveal her secret to Ruff. It was clearly something Fishlegs had to tell her, though he was reluctant to do so.

"It'd be better if you heard it from him."

"Why?" Ruff almost yelled. "What does this have to do with me?"

Astrid glanced up with her friend and gave her the best apologetic smile she could muster up. A smile that obviously said 'I would tell you if I could, but I can't'.

Ruffnut didn't buy it. "Who punched Snotlout, Astrid?"

Suddenly, the two teens were interrupted by Hiccup, wobbling his way up the hill. "Astrid, wait! Don't tell Ruffnut about-" He stopped dead in his tracks. "Ruff!" Hiccup stopped to catch his breath and ruffled his hair. "Hey..what's up?"

Ruff glanced from Astrid to the young blacksmith and back again. "Oh, Gods. Don't tell me it was _him_!"

* * *

**A/N**: Like I said, this chapter SO doesn't make up for the time I've been gone, but I really hope the next chapter will. Thanks again for reading! Comments are love.


	8. About You Now

**A/N**: Thanks for all the feedback, guys! It's nice to see people are still around for this story. Okay, so here's a new chapter! Looks long, but it's not really. Just a lot of dialog. The chapter's title is based off a Miranda Cosgrove song. I think it suits Fishlegs in this chapter pretty well. ["Can we bring yesterday back around? 'Cuz I know how I feel about you now."] Thanks for reading!

* * *

"Did she tell her?" Fishlegs asked as soon as Astrid and Hiccup returned to the blacksmith shop.

"No," Hiccup answered. "She didn't get a chance to."

Astrid huffed. "What makes you so sure I was gonna tell her?"

"Why else would you go to the well?"

"You needed water!"

Hiccup tapped the empty bucket his girlfriend was holding. "Still do, apparently."

Her cheeks went red. "You distracted me!"

"Well, I can't argue with that." He returned with an impish grin. "I _can_ be pretty distracting."

Astrid hit him lightly with the bucket and turned towards the door. "Fine, I'll just go back then."

"No!" Fishlegs cut in.

"No," Hiccup repeated, pulling the container from her hands. "_I'll_ go."

"No," She also repeated, tossing the bucket into the remaining teen's lap. "_Fishlegs_ will go. He has to tell Ruffnut how he feels, anyway."

"Right," He started, rubbing the back of his neck. "About that.."

Fish shot a look at Hiccup. "You didn't tell her?"

"Tell me what?"

The young blacksmith cleared his throat. "Fishlegs is certain that what he felt towards Snotlout and Ruffnut last night was not jealousy, but an angry attitude due to lack of sleep and hunger pangs."

Astrid blinked. "That's the stupidest thing I ever heard." She glared at over at Fishlegs. "What's wrong with Ruffnut?"

"N-nothing, I just-"

"Then why is it so hard for you to admit you like her back?"

"Back?" He questioned. "What 'back'?"

"She likes you," Astrid said. "And you like her _back_."

"She doesn't like me."

"Well, yeah - maybe not anymore."

"No, she never liked me," Fishlegs said. "She told me."

"She told you that?"

He nodded. "She said she only came over a few nights ago to apologize about a book she 'borrowed' and then lost." He paused, while Astrid considered this. "She didn't actually take a book, but I-"

"When did she tell you this?"

"The other night," Fish answered.

"_Why_ did she tell you this?"

"I don't know," He shrugged. "It just came out after I told her I didn't like her."

Astrid's face suddenly flooded with realization. She lowered her head and let out a soft noise that appeared to be a laugh. "Guys are-"

"Such idiots," Hiccup finished. "We know."

"What?" Fishlegs questioned.

"She didn't mean it, Fish."

"Then why'd she say it?"

"You had just admitted you didn't like her back," She explained. "She felt stupid. Embarrassed. Any girl in their right mind would've done the same thing."

"I don't under-"

"She was just being stubborn. Kinda like how you're being about liking Ruffnut."

He didn't speak for a minute or so. Fishlegs was still wrapping his head around everything Astrid had just told him. It all made sense, of course. The kiss, the nonexistent book, the date with...

"Well, if she still likes me – or liked me, anyway – why did I see her on a date with Snotlout last night?"

"It _wasn't_ a date!" Astrid shouted, defending her friend.

"It _was_ a date," Hiccup added. "Snotlout told me."

"No, it wasn't."

"Yes, it was."

"It wasn't!"

"It was," Fishlegs cut in. "I was there. I know what I saw."

"And what did you see, exactly?"

"I don't know," He said, with a shrug. "Snotlout. Ruffnut."

"And?"

"And they were together."

"So?"

"So.." Fishlegs almost sneered, though the action was fairly new to him. "What else is there to tell?"

"Don't you think there was a slight chance they were just, you know, hanging out?"

"No," Hiccup spoke up. "Because they were-"

Astrid shushed him and turned her attention back to Fish. She blinked, "Well?"

He released a breath. "No, I didn't think that, because I've been thinking too much lately. I'm tired of thinking!"

She had to stifle a giggle. "Fishlegs? Tired of thinking?"

"Well," He started, twiddling his thumbs. "I've come to the conclusion that when Ruffnut is involved, it's best to never think. To act _without_ thinking." He swallowed. "It's what Ruff would do, anyway."

Hiccup and Astrid stared at their friend. He had a point.

"So, what are you going to do?" Hiccup asked, breaking the silence that had filled the room.

"I don't know."

Astrid sat on the floor in front of him. "Well, let's start simple. What do you think of-"

He glared at her.

"Sorry," She mumbled. "Not think. Uhm...oh! Okay, when I say Ruffnut, what's the first thing that pops into your head?"

"Her hair," Fish answered automatically. The other two teens stared back. "It's...well, it's kinda pretty."

Astrid forced herself to hold back a grin. "Good, and how do you feel about _her_?"

"I think..."

She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Er..I _know_," He sighed, dropping his head. "Maybe...I like her, a little? Maybe a lot."

She nodded her approval.

Fishlegs let out another sigh and looked up at Astrid. "I have to tell her, don't I?"

* * *

**A/N**: Oh, yes, Fishlegs - you do. ;P I already have the next chapter written up, so I'll see you all soon! Thanks again for reading! Comments is love. :]


	9. After Dark

**A/N**: Oh, the things that pop into my head, sometimes. I swear, I almost _never _stick to my original ideas. Well, I hope this is an interesting chapter, despite the shortness of it. I rather enjoyed writing it. :P Thanks for reading!

_*EDIT* Thanks to a tip from Digital Dragon Productions, I've decided to start this chapter on a different note. It now starts right after Ruffnut's last chapter [ie: What Happened]._

* * *

"Hiccup," Astrid said through clenched teeth. "What are you doing here?"

"I've, uh, I've got something I need to show you," He mumbled. "At home."

He walked over to his girlfriend, slightly waving to Ruff in the process. "Hi, Ruffnut." He grabbed Astrid's arm and pulled as hard as he could, walking forward. "Bye, Ruffnut."

Surprisingly enough, he actually managed to lift the blonde off the ground, even if just for a moment.

"No thank you, Hiccup," She said, falling back on the grass. "I'm fine right here."

"Astrid," Ruffnut spoke up. "What's going on? Did Hiccup punch Snotlout?"

"W-What?" The young blacksmith stumbled. "What makes you think I'm even capable of that?"

"I don't know," She admitted. "You work with tools all day. Maybe you have some hidden arm strength no one's aware of."

Astrid snorted.

"Hey!"

"Well, if you have got some 'hidden strength', then go on," His girlfriend challenged. "Pull me off the ground."

He tried. He failed. She laughed.

"Well, I did before!"

"Only because I let you!"

Hiccup tried again, pulling at her arm as hard as he could. Then, through a tired grunt, he called for Toothless. The obedient Night Fury hopped in, grabbed at the back of Astrid's tunic and immediately began pulling her towards the village.

"Hey, no fair!" She tried to break free.

"Bye again, Ruffnut!" Hiccup called, walking down the hill.

"Hey, wait!" The girl twin stood up. "If it wasn't Hiccup, then who punched Snotlout?"

Astrid looked cautious at first, then after an eye roll shouted back, "Fishlegs, okay? Fishlegs punched Snotlout!"

"Fishlegs?" She questioned. "What? Why?"

But unfortunately, Astrid was already gone and way out of earshot. Ruff grumbled and sat back down.

* * *

Hours later, after the sun was replaced by the moon in the sky, Ruff found herself at the Jorgenson's front steps. Not really sure how she got there, but also not caring why, she knocking on the hardwood door and waited.

"Hey," Ruffnut waved, when Snotlout opened his door. "How's the arm?"

"What? _This _arm?" He let out a forced laugh. "It's never been better!" He tried to hide a wince as he steadied it, but it didn't go unnoticed. "W-What makes you think anything's wrong with it?"

"I heard Fishlegs punched you."

He dropped the act. "Yeah." He nodded. "Still don't know why, though." _You and me both._

"Maybe you lost a book you borrowed from him or something," She suggested, amused by her own inside joke.

"What?"

"Maybe he just wanted to pick a fight."

"Fishlegs?" Snotlout questioned. "Not likely."

"Did you manage to get him back?"

"Er, yeah," He nodded. "Black eye, I think. If I had been sober, I probably would have tried to talk things through, first. Though, that was obviously the _last _thing _he_ wanted to do."

"Oh."

Snotlout stood in his doorway awkwardly, rocking back on his heels.

"Well?" Ruffnut insisted. "Aren't you gonna invite me in?"

"Oh!" He stumbled backwards, giving her room to squeeze through. "Of course."

They sat at his kitchen table. There only source of light was from two large burning candles at each end of the table.

"So," He said, wincing as he tried to place his elbow on the wood. "Sorry I never came back from our da-"

She glared at him.

He cleared his throat. "Sorry I never came back after what happened yesterday."

"No big deal," Ruff shrugged. "You not returning was the highlight of the whole evening."

He smirked. "I'll pretend that didn't hurt."

"Aww, that's no fun."

Silence echoed that last response. Ruffnut tried to entertain herself by watching the light flame lick its way up the candle wax.

"Was it really that bad?"

Her eyes didn't waver. "What?"

"Us hanging out last night."

She paused, finally looking away from the homemade candle. "No, actually. It was nice. Got me to stop thinking about things that have been bothering me. For a while, anyway."

"Things like...Fishlegs?"

She blinked and narrowed her eyes at him. "How do you know about that?"

"Hiccup told me."

"How did Hiccup..?" She cut herself off. _Astrid, _Ruffnut thought, gritting her teeth. "What else did he tell you?"

"He told me you like him. Or that _he_ likes _you_," Snotlout paused. "I can't really remember."

She sighed and rubbed her arm. "Yeah...well, I thought I did."

"What changed your mind?"

"He didn't like me back," She shrugged, as if to forget the whole thing. She sure wanted to. "After all, what's the point of liking someone if they don't like you back?"

He tried to smile. "You know, I keep asking myself the same thing."

"Snotlout.." She tried, but when she looked over at him, he had turned away from the table; his head down. "'Lout, come on!"

Ruffnut let out an exasperated sigh and scooted closer to the table. "'Lout, look at me." He didn't move a muscle. "Look at me or I swear to Thor, I'll punch you right in the face!"

He moved his head slightly in her direction. Annoyed, Ruffnut reached over the table and pulled his face to her's. "I like you, okay? You're one of my best friend's – you know that." There was a pause. "Right?"

He tried to nod.

"Good. So, stop being all...how you're being now. 'Cuz it's really starting to freak me out!" She released her hand from his chin then, but she didn't move away. She just stared at him, waiting for his reply.

Then, suddenly, surprising them both, Snotlout broke the small distance between them and kissed Ruff roughly on the lips. She was shocked, obviously, but she didn't pull away. The kiss ended seconds later, leaving them both wide-eyed and breathless.

When Ruffnut finally recovered, her mind clicked back on. She stood up from the table quickly, a scowl highlighting her face in the half-darkness. "Are you insane!"

Snotlout's jaw dropped. "But-"

"Everything was just fine," She growled. "Why'd you have to go and do a stupid thing like that?"

She stomped towards the door. Then, in a flash she was back. Swiftly, she punched his arm and stalked off again.

'Lout moaned in pain. "Couldn't you have least hit my _good_ arm?"

* * *

**A/N**: I'm pretty sure the next chapter will be the last chapter. I don't have it written down yet, so I'm not positive. The ending may come in a couple more chapters - I don't know. But when I know, you'll know. Thanks again for reading! As always, comments are love. :]


	10. Different Place, Same Time

**A/N**: Hey, everyone! SO sorry for the delay. Life, you know. It seems this chapter's being updated exactly two months after the last one [on the dot] - so that's pretty cool. Maybe, lol.

Anyways, it appears I was wrong. This is _not_ the last chapter. The next one might be. Also, this chapter is short, so apologies for that. I've always wanted to write something like this, that being - where there's two different things going on at the same time and you keep cutting from one scene to the other. It's probably not as fun to read as it would be watching it in a movie; but it was fun to write, nonetheless, lol.

Hope you enjoy it! :]

* * *

"Ruffnut!" Fishlegs called, running up the hill towards the Thorston household. Even in the pitch black, he managed to spot Ruffnut right away, her back to him. "Ruff!"

She didn't move. Fishlegs stopped at the top of the hill to catch his breath. "Hey, Ruff," He said, through short breaths.

Again, her back remained facing him. He sighed. "Look, I realize I'm the last person you want to see right now, but I have to tell you something. A-and I better say it now before I go and do something stupid again, like punching Snotlout."

Quickly, _she_ spun around, chuckling. "So, you're the one who punched 'Lout out at Meade Hall, huh?"

Fish stumbled. "Tuffnut!"

* * *

"Astrid," Ruffnut greeted her friend at the blacksmith shop. "I need to tell you something."

"Sure," She smiled. "Did you talk to Fishlegs?"

"What?" Ruff asked. "No."

"Oh."

"Why would Fishlegs want to talk to me?"

"No reason," She answered, innocently.

Ruff narrowed the gaze on the other blonde, but quickly shrugged it off. "I kissed Snotlout."

* * *

The boy twin bit through an apple he was holding. "Yeah, who were you expecting?"

"I thought you were Ruffnut," Fishlegs admitted. "You two look alike-"

"-From the back," He interrupted. "Yeah, I know." He muttered something under his breath about getting his haircut, then bit into the apple again. "Why do you want Ruffnut?"

A couple of apple bits hit Fish in the face. He tried to wipe them away. "Erm, I just wanted to tell her something, that's all."

"Tell her what?"

"Nothing," He replied. "Just, er...about a book she borrowed from me - yeah."

Tuff laughed, more pieces of apple flinging towards the larger of the two vikings. "A book; right. Well, I'm not sure she wants to talk to you right now."

* * *

"What?"

"Well, actually, _he_ kissed _me_." Then Ruffnut quickly added, "Though, I did kiss back. Kinda."

"When? Where? Why?" Astrid questioned in a rush.

"About an hour ago at his house."

"But _why_?" She insisted. "How could you do that to Fishlegs?"

Ruff made a face. "Do what to Fishlegs? What are you talking about?"

* * *

Fishlegs blinked. "Why not? Did she say that?"

Tuffnut shook his head. "Not technically, but I could tell. Twin to twin telepathy, you know."

"When?"

He shrugged. "Since we were born, I guess."

"No," Fish shook his own head. "I mean when did she...'telepathically' tell you that?"

"The other day – just before you kicked Snotlout's butt."

"But that's why I'm here," He said. "To apologize."

* * *

Astrid breathed out in a loud huff. All these stupid things she'd been keeping to herself lately and for what? Ruffnut and Fishlegs were impossible to deal with – with or without one's help. "To tell you..." She paused, trying to find the right words.

Ruff stood up and crossed her arms. "Tell me what?"

* * *

"Shouldn't you be saying sorry to _Snotlout_?" Tuffnut asked.

"Well, yes," Fishlegs admitted. "But first I have to talk to Ruffnut."

"Then go tell her," He mumbled. "What's stopping you?"

Fish blinked. "Isn't she here?"

"No."

"Well, where is she?"

Tuff shrugged, making a face. "How should I know?"

"You're her brother."

"Oh, yeah." He paused. "Well, sorry; can't help you. The last time I saw her was the last time you saw her - she never came home last night. "

* * *

Astrid raised her eyes to the ceiling, then brought them to level with Ruffnut's. "To tell you that he likes you, alright?"

Both Ruffnut and Fishlegs, though, at the moment, in two different places, found each of themselves sinking to the ground they were standing on and staring up at the person in front of them. "Oh."

* * *

**A/N**: Again, sorry if it's lame - I'll be sure to make the next [last?] chapter much _much_ better. Also, I'm not exactly sure the "telepathy" thing is probable for the viking times, but...it just sounded like something Tuffnut would say, lol.

Thanks SO much for reading, everyone! And for commenting, favoriting and subscribing to this story. You guys are the best! Seriously.


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